Conscientious+Connectors

=**Bushman & Haas’ Ch. 8 “Diversity in Young Adult Literature” **= =** LITERATURE CIRCLE **= = =
 * PAIR 3 - //CONSCIENTIOUS CONNECTORS//: **

Your job is to find connections between the material our class is reading and the world outside. This means connecting the reading to your own lives, to happenings at school or in the community, to similar events at other times and places, to other people or problems that you are reminded of. You might also identify connections between this material and other writings on the same topic or similar ones – from our class or other classes! Whatever the reading connects you with is worth sharing! List ** at least 3 connections **that you found between this reading and other people, places, events, authors, texts, and/or...


 * Just like you scaffold for different learning needs of native English speakers, ELL need scaffolding for their different levels of proficiency. Everyone starts off with a different level and understanding and that should be respected.
 * Pronunciation is about the ebb and flow. It takes time and practice and even someone who knows English really well might not pronounce things correctly. Dialect comes into play "route" vs. "route." This can also apply to spelling; i.e. color vs "colour."
 * //To Kill a Mockingbird,// //Their Eyes Were Watching God// and //The Hate You Give// all show instances of code-switching or show different dialect/pronunciation than what might be considered "normal."
 * Teachers need support. This includes administration, federal, parental, district, you name it.
 * When we teach thematic units we could use texts that are translated into a variety of languages to scaffold and use their primary language as an introduction to the language they're learning.
 * Cultural relevant pedagogy—teaching your students in a way that reflect them and challenges their views of themselves and others.
 * After reading this chapter on diversity and having witnessed my brother daily deal with health problems, I am interested to read some of the suggested titles about chronic health issues (a couple of the books listed included a character dealing with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis and another dealing with cerebral palsy). (Rebecca posting--Dr. Y asked me to since I missed last week)
 * I like the suggestions for reading about characters struggling with mental health issues. On the radio the other day I heard an ad for a suicide survivor walk and thought about people we (my husband and I) have lost to suicide as well as my own battles with anxiety and postpartum depression. I think it might be comforting for students who struggle with something like bipolar disease or schizophrenia to be able to read YA books about characters struggling with similar things, and I think it would be an opportunity for eye-opening reading for students who haven't struggled in that way. (RB)